Downtown Boone Development Association

Mast General Store Celebrates
Land Trust Day on June 5th

The Mast General Store celebrates Land Trust Day on Saturday, June 5th. Recognized for the eighth year at Mast Store, Land Trust Day is a friend-raising event encouraging new memberships in local land trusts as well as an educational opportunity to learn how these groups unite the past and future by preserving our land heritage.

“According to the Conservation Trust for North Carolina, the state has lost 2.8 million acres of cropland and forest land to development over the last 20 years.  By 2022, it is projected that certain areas of North Carolina will experience an additional 50% decrease in their forests and cropland,” said John Cooper, president of the Mast General Store. “With those statistics in mind, it’s more important than ever to have an active plan to protect our open farmland, scenic vistas, and significant landmarks for future generations to enjoy and benefit from, not just in North Carolina, but throughout the southeast. Our annual Land Trust Day helps highlight local organizations that are working hard to do just that.”

Representatives from local land trust organizations will be on hand at the Mast Stores in the High Country on June 5th to share with guests the activities they are undertaking to conserve the open spaces in the region. The Mast General Store will donate 20 percent of sales on that Saturday to these organizations.

The land trust movement is not new. Some land trusts have been in place for over a century. In the past five years the amount of land protected by local and regional land trusts has doubled nationwide. Currently, there are more than 1,600 land trusts active across the nation. These organizations are extraordinarily successful in their missions, having protected more than 37 million acres of land according to the National Land Trust Census.  The two land trusts in the High Country area have different main focuses that translate into many of the same goals – preserving our land heritage.

The National Committee for the New River (NCNR) is the oldest organization, founded in 1974 to stop two dams proposed for the free-flowing New. Although its land trust arm is not as old as the organization itself, it is quite active in North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. NCNR envisions a permanently protected New River as a treasured natural resource. The mission of NCNR is to advocate for successful protection of the New River, to restore eroding river and stream banks and enhance riparian habitat, and to permanently protect land along the River.

Over the last 31 years, the organization has protected nearly 5,000 acres of land important to the River’s water quality, scenic and natural values, and has restored over 56 miles of river and stream bank. The NCNR recently protected the Crossover Farm in Alleghany County, where the New River crosses into North Carolina from Virginia for the first time. The farm is a working cattle operation and has been in the family for at least five generations. Encroaching second home development across the river motivated the family to protect their farm and preserve their agricultural heritage. Canoeists, kayakers, and fishing enthusiasts will forever enjoy the viewshed on this spectacular part of the river. The easements encompass 206 acres and a mile of riverfront. With the help of NCNR donors, the family was able to purchase an adjacent parcel just downstream and donate an additional conservation easement on this land as well.

The recently formed Blue Ridge Conservancy unites the efforts of two very active land trusts based in the High Country. By joining forces of the High Country Conservancy and the Blue Ridge Rural Land Trust, it hopes to provide greater potential for accomplishing its land conservation mission.

Blue Ridge Conservancy (BRC) continues to protect land at the headwaters of the New River, and on Snake Mountain, adding to one of the state’s most beautiful parks, Elk Knob. With two critical projects completed in the past year, BRC added over 300 acres to Elk Knob State Park. On Snake Mountain, BRC partnered with The Nature Conservancy to complete two significant projects. The first protected was 195 acres on the high, grassy ridge at the northern end of the mountain, known as Snake Mountain Bald. This ridge offers incredible views of Grandfather Mountain State Park to the south and Mt. Rogers, VA to the north. Extending down from Snake Mountain’s ridge to Meat Camp Road, the second project protected 119 acres and includes two headwater streams of the New River as well as excellent wildlife habitat.

“We are excited about providing this opportunity to the land trusts in our local areas,” said Cooper. “President Theodore Roosevelt said in 1912 ‘There can be no greater issue than that of conservation in this country.’ Those words still ring true today. The preservation activities in our area are beneficial to the quality of life for residents and go a long way to further the sustainability of the tourism industry, a mainstay of our economy.”

For more information on land trusts, stop by the information table on Saturday, June 5th in all Mast Store locations. Visit the local land trusts’ websites – www.blueridgeconservancy.org, or www.ncnr.org – for more information on current projects and how to become a member of the organizations. For further information on land trusts in North Carolina, go to www.ctnc.org/landtrusts/trusts.htm. To learn more about land trust activities in general, visit the Land Trust Alliance online at www.lta.org.

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